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Iraq Situation: UNHCR Flash Update - 11 June 2017

Attachments

402,126 Internally displaced Iraqis verified as being currently displaced from Mosul and surrounding areas since military operations to retake the city began on 17 October 2016

520,000 IDPs, returnees and members of the host community from Mosul and surrounding areas assisted by UNHCR since 17 October 2016.

166,020 Individuals (36,343 households) impacted by military operations to retake Mosul since October 2016 are currently enrolled in ASSIST, UNHCR’s assistance tracking tool 3 million

IDPs since January 20142 253,992 Iraqi refugees hosted in countries in the region, and 19,968 Iraqis received in Al Hol camp in Syria since 17 October 2016

POPULATION MOVEMENTS

Close to 18,000 internally displaced persons (IDPs) have reportedly fled west Mosul and surrounding districts between 8 and 10 June. Over 6,000 of those IDPs came from Zanjili neighbourhood in west Mosul, where clashes were ongoing. They arrived at Mosul Woods screening site in east Mosul, close to the Tigris River, on 10 June, according to local authorities. The remaining 12,000 IDPs3 were transferred to Hammam Al-Alil screening site, south of Mosul. They mostly originated from Ba’aj and Tel Afar districts, west of Mosul, with some families from west Mosul city.

Fighting, lack of access to food and water remain the main causes of displacement in and around Mosul. Families recently fleeing Ba’aj and Tel Afar who were interviewed by UNHCR’s protection partners reported that lack of access to clean water and lack of affordable food were the primary reasons for their displacement.

IDPs from west Mosul also cite the intense fighting, along with lack of access to food, water and electricity, as rendering living conditions in their places of origin unbearable.

Most IDPs from west Mosul continue to relocate to east Mosul, where friends and family members can reportedly support them. Families from Ba’aj and Tel Afar predominantly relocate to camps, mostly to Al Salamiyah 2 and Jad’ah 6 camps, both recently opened south of Mosul.

SITUATION UPDATE

Iraqi Security Forces have reportedly recaptured Zanjili neighbourhood in west Mosul, leaving only the Old City and the adjacent neighbourhoods of Bab Sinjar and Al Shiffa still under extremist groups’ full or partial control.

Terrorist attacks in various parts of Iraq multiply as armed opposition groups lose territory. At least 224 attacks carried out by opposition armed groups were reported in Iraq between 1 and 7 June, the majority of them targeting or impacting civilians. Most of the attacks (150) reportedly took place outside of Mosul and surrounding areas in the Ninewa Governorate: between 9 and 10 June, at least two high profile attacks were carried out by extremists groups in governorates outside Ninewa, such as Salah al-Din and Karbala, reportedly killing close to 60 persons.

RESPONSE UPDATE

UNHCR’s protection partners provides daily critical assistance at mustering points and transit sites in and around Mosul city. Mobile teams are covering the main transit sites used by IDPs fleeing west Mosul on their way to safety, identifying vulnerable cases and advocating for them to be prioritised for assistance and referrals at transit sites. They also ensure IDPs are informed of space and services available in camps when they move onwards, flagging gaps in services to relevant partners at different sites.

UNHCR and humanitarian partners are conducting assessments at the household level in retaken areas in east and west Mosul to collect data that will inform interventions. The assessments target returnees to Mosul, as well as the population who stayed in their homes throughout the conflict, and aim to give an overview of their most pressing needs and vulnerabilities. Over 16,000 households have been assessed so far and the results will inform relevant actors’ assistance planning. In total, about 177,000 IDPs have returned to Mosul, according to the Government. Of them, 144,500 were verified as having returned to their places of origin, according to IOM-DTM).